Cress of any kind makes a lovely chopped garnish for the top of soup that is sweet or mild, for a little bite. Use it anywhere you'd use lettuce or with lettuce. I love it stuffed into a half pita or a wrap, with cheese and a thin slice or two of tomato, add a thin sice of onion also if you like.

Most cress is delicate, handle it lightly. After washing whirl it in a colindar to remove as much water as possibleI, it will rot readily when too moist. I store mine one of two ways.
Insert enough paper towel into a large enough plastic bag to go down me side and up the other side towards the top of the bag, put the cress inside and seal, put in fridge. Use more bags so it doesn't compress too much. But my favorite container for this and for keeping lettuce a very VERY long time In the fridge, in perfect condition, is a green lidded plastic container with a green perforated insert in the bottom by Rubbermaid called a Produce Saver. I purchased mine in Target and I have bought them in all sorts of sizes and given them as gifts. I'm not a young woman and over the years I have tried all sorts of things for lettuce and berries, etc., these are the best, by far! No matter the method of storage do not compress the lettuce or cress to cram as much as possible into the container, or any bag, as moisture in those areas will still cause rot.

Apologies for formatting issues or an early misspelling, not easy to correct on my iPad.

My Vietnamese mother use to make this simple soup with cress and little bit of ground meat:

Heat 1 tb oil in a medium pot. Saute 1 tsp minced garlic for about 20 seconds, to soften, but not brown. Add 2-3 oz of ground pork (beef works too), 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 1 tsp salt. With a wooden spoon or spatula, break up the meat as it browns. Add 4 cups of water or broth (chicken or veggie). Bring to a boil and add cleaned cress, ~2-3 cups. Simmer for about 5 minutes. Taste the broth and season with salt or fish sauce (which was and still is her "salt" in the kitchen), if needed. Serve with hot cooked rice.

It's got a little sweetness from the cress and that little bit of meat gives the soup some body and lots of flavor without dominating the cress.

ahhhh the BEST quick delicious meal is flank steak sliced SUPER thin sautéed with garlic and watercress!! serve over rice and dip the sautéed/stir-fried goodness in a mixture of lemon juice, salt, and pepper. so good. and so quick. and you can find our recipe for it here:

http://www.beyondthestoop.com/2011/08/watercress-and-beef.html

Bo Luc Lac.
Google the Slanted Door's recipe. It's a Vietnames grilled beef dish. The beef is served on top of the cress with either a baguette or jasmine rice alongside. It's amazing!

I had a wonderful cress salad at Zuni Cafe. It was lightly dressed with a vinagrette, sliced blood oranges, and goat cheese. Simple, but wonderful.

In salads or sandwiches or on soups- its just a great addition to many things! I also like to put some on peperonata before serving.

Here are a few different recipe ideas from all around the world. http://www.eatyourbooks.com/library/recipes#online-recipes=true&q=cress

On a crusty baguette drizzled with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Maybe a squeeze of lemon juice.

My go-to fresh watercress salad (can swap for arugula as well) is just a dressing of fresh squeezed lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, and some shaved reggiano on top :)